


A Smile Worth More Than Gold

by Verai



Series: RDR2 tumblr Requests [35]
Category: Red Dead Redemption (Video Games)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Gun Violence, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-22
Updated: 2020-03-22
Packaged: 2021-02-28 22:48:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,212
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23264971
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Verai/pseuds/Verai
Summary: Arthur comes across a woman in a field, and out of curiosity, decides to speak to her. He makes a friend he’ll never forget.Eleanor Ivie is a collector and an adventurer. When an intimidating man comes to talk to her, she is wary, but is soon charmed by his surprisingly kind demeanor and asks him something neither of them expected."Will you hunt treasure with me?"
Relationships: Arthur Morgan/Original Female Character(s)
Series: RDR2 tumblr Requests [35]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1268522
Comments: 13
Kudos: 50





	A Smile Worth More Than Gold

**Author's Note:**

> For my dear @writingandsins, who put up with me asking for moodboards for Verai and Everett, not just once, not twice, but THREE TIMES. Thanks for being so patient with me!

The sky was blue, the air was fresh and clean, and the scent of wildflowers and fresh earth carried on the light breeze as a young woman stood on top of a rolling hill, leaning on her shovel. Before her eyes, a wood chest, the paint long gone, the metal hinges rusty with age, lay half buried in the soft soil. A smile crept onto her face as she knelt down and started to pick the lock. Now the fun began.

***

Arthur traveled a lot and he’d see a lot of strange things in his time, but today, as he rode his horse off the path through a grassy plain looking for some creeping thyme, he spotted a particularly unusual sight. His curiosity getting the better of him, as it always did, he rode closer until he could spot the shape of a woman, kneeling in the dirt, stabbing away at something. He got off his horse and silently walked closer, wanting to see what she was doing.

Huffing under her breath, the woman lifted up a hunting knife and brought it down, a loud clink echoing around her as she mumbled under her breath.

“Need some help there, miss?”

She turned to him quickly, her other hand immediately going to the pistol on her hip. Her green eyes flashed and stray strands of her auburn hair whipped around her face as she looked at him with suspicion. “I’m doing quite fine, thank you,” she said, her tone polite but laced with warning.

Arthur immediately held his hands up. “I don’t mean you no harm, miss. Just curious as to why a lady was playin’ in the dirt.”

Looking down at herself, she laughed self-consciously. “Oh, I look a right mess, don’t I?” Her shirtwaist, despite rolling up her sleeves, was flecked with dirt, as were her boots. Getting up and dusting off her pants, she extended her hand out to him. “Forgive my rudeness, I don’t particularly like being snuck up on. My name is Eleanor Ivie.”

Her speech was slightly accented, British, he guessed. The cadence of her words was like music, her voice soft and silky, caressing his ears. He smiled despite himself. “Name’s Arthur. Sorry ‘bout sneakin’ up on ya. Didn’t mean to disturb you.” He took her hand and shook it, noting that her arms were freckled, as was her face, reminding him of a young deer. Was the rest of her just as cute? He quickly shoved down the thought before he let go of her hand and nodded at the box behind her. “Need some help openin’ that? I… have some experience.”

***

Eleanor weighed her options; if she allowed this strange man to open up the box, he could potentially overpower her and take the contents for himself. On the other hand, she couldn’t open it without help, and there was no way she’d be able to dig out the chest and carry it all the way back to her tent on her own.

She watched as Arthur took out his gun and handed it to her. “I can tell you don’t trust me. Here. As a sign of good faith.”

Taking the revolver, she watched as he kneeled down in front of the chest, examined the hinges and lock, pulled out his own hunting knife, and with a quick, strong thrust, broke the lock.

“There ya go, Miss Ivie.” He stood back up and took a step towards her, sheathing his knife. It hadn’t occurred to her how big he was until he got closer, but that wasn’t what made her heart skip.

It was his eyes. His smile made them shine, and their color reminded her of the striking blue-green of Cotorra Springs. Momentarily stunned by their beauty, it took a few seconds for her to realize that Arthur was holding out his hand to her.

“May I have my gun back?”

“Oh! Yes, of course,” she said apologetically as she tried to hand back his gun, but she fumbled and nearly dropped it. Trying to catch it in her hands, she felt his hands enclose hers as they caught it together. His touch was warm, his skin calloused, his grip gentle on hers as he plucked the gun from her fingers and holstered it.

Her heart hammering, she swallowed and attempted to look unflustered by the contact. “M-my apologies.”

Arthur just chuckled. “No harm done, my lady.” He gestured back at the chest. “You wanna see what you’ve found?”

“Oh, right,” she said as she found her confidence once more. She had a feeling that there were good heirlooms in there, but she also thought it might be underwear. That would be embarrassing. Not knowing how to dismiss her visitor, she opted for the truth. “It might not be very exciting; could be union suits, for all I know.”

Arthur laughed. “That’d be amusin’ on its own. Who’d bury that way out here?”

Eleanor laughed with him. Of course. How silly. Turning back to the chest, she opened the lid.

***

Looking over her shoulder, Arthur saw some very mundane things in the chest: a pile of clothes, a fancy comb, some hair pins, some gun oil, and a small bag. It was the bag that intrigued him, but he left it alone, thinking that it wouldn’t be right to steal from this lady right after he had helped her. When she reached for it first and emptied its contents onto the pile of clothes, two gold bars fell out. She picked one up and turned back to him.

“Here, for your trouble.”

Arthur was astonished. Half of the take? All he did was open the chest. “Are you sure?”

“Yes, you did help me, after all.”

Taking the proffered gold bar and tucking it away in his satchel, Arthur tipped his hat towards her. “Well, thank you kindly. Guess I better get goin’.”

As he turned to go back to his horse, he felt her hand grip his elbow.

“Wait!”

He looked at her, struck once again by her green eyes. They were a lighter shade than he had ever seen, reminding him of spring leaves. “Yes?” he asked, his voice softening.

“Could… could you… perhaps, help me with another treasure hunt?”

Turning to face her fully, he looked at her, somewhat surprised. “You do this fer a livin’?”

She stood up straight, jutting out her chin, a proud smile on her face. “Yes, this is my job. I’m a collector of artifacts and rare objects.” She leaned towards him. “There’s supposed to be a treasure chest on a small island in Flat Iron Lake. I’ll give you half the gold we find. What do you say?”

Arthur pondered. The thought of gold was awfully tempting, but even more so was the opportunity to spend more time with this intriguing person.

“Alright, I’m in.”

***

They spent half a day gathering supplies for a three day trip, leaving their horses at a nearby stable and walking to the shoreline. Finding an abandoned rowboat, Eleanor praised their luck. 

"This one looks safe," she said as she started to push it out into the water. "I'll check it first."

Suddenly Arthur was at her side, helping her push, his shoulder brushing against hers. Glancing sideways at his profile, she noticed his look of ferocious concentration and quickly turned back to the task at hand. She didn't want to think about how her body warmed at his closeness

Before the boat went farther into the water, Arthur put a hand on her shoulder. "Why don't you get in first, Miss Ivie." He stepped back and held out his hand to help her in. 

"I told you, you can call me Ella," she said as she took his hand, reveling in his touch as he helped her into the boat, his hand hovering over her hip in case she fell.

"Alright, Ella."

Eleanor felt a little thrill at hearing her nickname from him; his voice had such a lovely texture to it. Gracefully stepping into the boat, she started to move towards the oars. 

"I can row," Arthur said as he pushed the boat into the water and hopped in. He shooed her away from the oars and sat down facing her. 

They rowed out into the lake and checked for leaks. After they confirmed that the boat was safe, they went back to shore and grabbed their bags, then set off for the first island. 

"We'll use this large island as our base and make camp for the night after we canvass these few islands here," Eleanor said as she showed Arthur the map she had of the lake. 

He nodded. "Sounds good."

***

The first afternoon was a bust. They had searched and dug and searched some more, but found only a couple of arrowheads and what looked like an old brush. As night began to fall, Arthur pulled out a cigarette and smoked while he leaned against his shovel, impatient to get back to the large island. 

"Almost done," Eleanor said over her shoulder as she jabbed her shovel in the dirt one last time, hitting nothing but sand. "But you're quite right, we should go."

"I didn't say anything," Arthur mumbled as he followed her back to the boat. 

"Didn't need to," she replied. "I could tell." Smiling as she threw her shovel back into the boat, she hopped in and went for the oars. 

"What did I say about rowin'?" he barked as he climbed in after her. 

"You've been rowing all day. I'm not some tenderfoot. I can handle a bit of manual labour." 

Unable to argue with her without disparaging her abilities, Arthur sat back and let the young lady row. It gave him a chance to observe her; Eleanor's brow wrinkled with focus as she pulled at the oars, a drop of sweat making its way from her temple, down her cheek, and into the collar of her shirt. His eyes immediately darted back up to her face. He was fascinated by her; a woman with the drive to search for hours for artifacts that seemed pretty worthless to him, but when she weaved him a tale of how the boar bristle brush was made, he felt swept up in her excitement. She could make something so mundane seem interesting, and he found himself leaning closer to her, perching on the edge of his seat, listening to her every word. 

***

They camped for the night, sharing a quiet meal of canned vegetables and fish that Eleanor had caught. After cleaning up and washing their hands in the lake, she sat on a patch of grass near the shore, enjoying the light of the moon over the water. She heard Arthur pad over to her and sit down. 

"Penny for your thoughts, Mr. Morgan?" 

"Eh, my thoughts ain't worth that much," he said as he chuckled in a self-deprecating tone. 

"Oh, come now. Surely you have something of interest in that head of yours."

Arthur was silent for a moment as he stared up at the stars. "You ever wonder," he said softly, "why the moon glows like that?"

"It reflects the light of the sun."

Arthur looked at her. "Really?" 

Eleanor nodded. She had learned a little bit of astronomy when she was younger. Picking up a stick, she drew in the sand the diagram she remembered long ago. "The sun is huge, but far away. The light travels past the earth to the moon and reflects off its surface."

"Huh. Imagine that." After looking at her diagram for a few moments more, he looked up at her, a smile on his face making him look younger. "Yer real smart, you know that? Why ain't you a teacher?" 

Eleanor was glad it was night so her blush wasn't so apparent. "That's all I remember, really. I don't know why the moon waxes and wanes, I don't know why the moon glows red some nights and white the others."

"I always imagined… well, never mind what I imagined."

She reached out and touched his knee. "Please, tell me! I'm interested!" 

"It's silly."

"I promise I won't laugh."

Arthur watched her for a moment, then let out a breath. "Alright. I thought that maybe the moon got red and big because she was nearer to the earth, like she was blushin', bein' so close to the one she likes." He laughed self-consciously. "That's what I thought when I was a kid, anyway."

"Oh, that's so sweet," she said, leaning in closer unconsciously. "That sounds like a folktale, the beautiful moon blushing as she comes closer to her beloved earth."

Arthur swallowed, his heart skipping a beat, feeling her hand on his knee, seeing her move closer to him. In the light of the moon, her skin glowed and her eyes sparkled with excitement. He had a strong urge to lean down and taste that smile. 

"Beautiful," he mumbled. 

Eleanor couldn't quite hear him, his lips barely moving, hampering his speech. "Hmm?" 

Leaning away from her, Arthur quickly looked up at the moon again to distract himself. "Just sayin' the moon was beautiful," he said, his voice cracking a little bit. After a moment, he got up. "I'm gonna turn in. Have a good night, Miss, uh, Ella."

"You too, Arthur."

***

She heard him walking away, and once he had tucked himself into his tent, Eleanor breathed a sigh. For a moment she thought that he had called her beautiful, but she chalked that up to wishful thinking.

Eleanor hadn't expected Arthur to help as much as he had; she felt pampered with everything he had done. It was a nice change of pace from having to do everything herself. But she had to remind herself that she had hired him to help, that he wasn't just doing this out of the kindness of his heart.

Yet every time he did something for her, no matter how small, she felt her heart glow, like the moon as she came close to her earth.

***

Two days had passed and they had found nothing big, just a few small trinkets here and there. Nothing worth a three day excursion, and certainly nothing worth bringing along someone who was expecting a big payout. 

She glanced at Arthur across the campfire as he roasted the duck they had caught. He was a charming man, once he let his guard down. But even she could tell that he was a bit annoyed by their lack of treasure. 

“I’m sorry Arthur,” she said all of a sudden after they had eaten in relative silence. “Not all treasure hunts end with a pot of gold.”

Arthur looked at her and let out a short laugh. “I know. It’s a bit… frustratin’, I guess. But I ain’t mad.”

When the dour expression on her face didn’t disappear, he scooted closer to her, leaning forward to meet her eyes. “Listen. Every job, every hunt, there ain’t ever a guarantee things will turn out good. We just gotta do our best. Okay?”

She blinked and looked at him, feeling inspired. “You’re right. I just… I guess I’ve been spoiled by my own good luck recently. Can’t have it so good all the time. Just have to keep going.” She took his hands into hers and held them, smiling up at him. “Thank you Arthur, I’m glad you’re here with me.”

“Uh, weren’t nothin’,” he mumbled, feeling shy all of a sudden.

Patting his knee, Eleanor leaned in. “Words can move the world, Arthur. Just by saying something kind, we can change hearts.”

Arthur looked at her, so close to his face, and wondered what her kiss would be like. Would it be soft and inviting like she was?

Then she pulled away and stood up. “I’m going to turn in for the night.” She touched his shoulder, running her fingers along his jacket as she walked past. “Good night, Arthur.”

He watched her duck into her tent, waited for the tent flap to close, then touched his shoulder in wonder. He wondered if his cheeks were as warm as he felt in his heart.

***

If they didn't find the big treasure today, they'd have to go back to shore empty handed. 

"Just two more islands to check," Eleanor said as she climbed into the little rowboat.

"Ain't holdin' out hope," Arthur muttered. 

When she looked back at him apologetically, he shook his head. "I didn't mean anythin' by that. It's just that we've searched so many places, and there's only two left? Seems unlikely."

Eleanor shrugged, undeterred by the odds. "I suppose, but I'm not giving up until the end."

They reached the first island, and after digging around for a few hours, they only found two liquor bottles, which she gladly gave to Arthur. 

"Well, even if we don't find anything, we can drink our sorrows away," he joked.

She raised an eyebrow at him. "Come now, we aren't done yet," she said, still optimistic. She started to walk towards the rowboat. 

They rowed to the last island in silence. This was one of the larger islands, and would probably take the rest of the afternoon to search. 

"Ella?" 

She blinked rapidly and turned to Arthur, who had already pulled the boat to shore and was holding his hand out to her. "Oh, I'm sorry, I was, daydreaming, I suppose."

Arthur chuckled. "That's fine, as long as you're alright."

Warmed by his concern, she took his hand and stepped off the boat. As she stepped off, her boot slipped on the wet surface and she started to tumble forward. 

"AHH-" 

Bracing herself for an impact with the sand, she found herself landing on Arthur, his arms wrapping around her protectively. Time stood as still as she did, her heart hammering wildly. She felt like she fit perfectly in his embrace, his heart beating against her ear, her cheek against his warm chest. He smelled of leather and musk, a man of the wilderness, and she found herself wanting to bury her face into his chest to take a deep breath. 

But that would be weird. So instead she pulled back and looked down, unable to meet his face. “I’m sorry, I’m not usually that clumsy,” she apologized.

“Not a problem,” he said, his voice lower, a slight breathlessness to his tone. 

Then she stepped out of his arms, and time moved once more.

***

It felt like they had dug in a million different spots, but they had only covered two-thirds of the island. In the middle of a dense patch of trees and brush, Eleanor would have forgotten they were on an island if not for the sound of the waves. Covered in sand and sweat, she longed for a bath and to feel clean again. She pulled out her metal detector. It was still clicking steadily, the light flashing at the same rate it had been the entire time they had entered the small forest.

“This is absurd,” she mumbled as she finished digging at their current spot. At every location they had dug, bits of rusted metal came out of the earth; it was as if something had exploded and the metal shrapnel had scattered across the ground. 

“Let’s try that,” Arthur said, pointing into the distance.

She looked up and saw that he had wandered further ahead. Jogging up to him, she looked through the trees to where he was pointing and saw a log sticking out of the ground.

No, not a log. A ship mast.

“Brilliant!” she exclaimed as she picked up her shovel and ran towards the shoreline.

They found a part of a broken ship, with a few crates strewn along the beach. Pulling her tools out of her bag, Eleanor immediately set to work opening all the crates they could see.

With Arthur’s help, they opened them all, finding the usual: rotten food, old clothes, some alcohol bottles which Arthur helped himself to, and a few small coins, which Eleanor took happily.

“I guess the gold sunk to the ocean,” Arthur mumbled as he looked around for anything else. Then his heart stopped as he watched Eleanor climb the broken shipwreck like a squirrel, ducking into the cavities and between the broken boards in search for more. He quickly went after her, worried that she would fall and hurt herself.

When he heard her scream, he felt like his soul left his body as he scrambled up the side of the wreck to look.

In the dimness of the half-sunken galley, he saw Eleanor with a huge grin on her face, up to her thighs in the water, tugging on a chest. Quickly leaping down to help her, they pulled the chest out far enough so they could open it without flooding the contents.

Arthur made quick work of the rusted lock, stepping back to gesture at the chest. “You open it. It’s your find.”

Eleanor grabbed his hand and put it on the chest. “Together.”

He nodded.

They opened the chest, and a gasp escaped both of them as they saw a pile of six gold bars and a soaked velvet bag. 

Their eyes met; for a moment all he could see was a beautiful shade of green.

Then she hugged him.

As if all the air was taken out of his lungs, he couldn’t move, couldn’t breathe. Her body pressed against his, and immediately he felt a joy in his old bones, and just as quickly he felt guilty for feeling that way. Still in shock that she would hug an ugly old man, he didn’t register that she had pulled her head back to look at him.

“Arthur?”

“Uh.”

She pulled away from him completely, and he felt the loss so keenly that he nearly whimpered. 

Wringing her hands nervously, Eleanor bowed her head. “I’m sorry, I know not everyone is comfortable with touch, but I couldn’t help myself, I was so excited.”

“No need to apologize,” he said with a smile, letting her know that it was alright. “Just wasn’t expectin’ it.”

She nodded, then gestured at the treasure. “Let’s split this and go back, shall we?” Taking out the gold bars, Eleanor handed three of them to Arthur before taking out the bag. Opening it, she poured the contents out into her hand: three silver hairpins, all with different patterns.

“Stunning,” she said, holding them each up to the light. Looking back at him, the twinkling in her eyes made him think of emeralds. He felt grateful that he could be here, now, in this moment, to witness the happiness that radiated from her.

Arthur helped her out of the shipwreck as she rambled on about how the pins were made, and he realized that he could listen to her for hours and not be bored. 

***

As he rowed back to shore, three gold bars richer, the sun set over the water, spreading its red light across the sky. Watching Eleanor, her eyes looking over the strange collection of hairpins with an excitement he reserved for large bags of money, he was filled with a yearning in his heart. If only this moment could last.

"Thank you Arthur," she said, looking up at him as if she knew he was thinking about her. "I'm glad you came."

"So am I," he said softly. "Got to relax a bit, and made some money too."

"But honestly, I can't wait to get a bath."

The thought of Eleanor in a bath ran through his mind, and he quickly moved on to other topics. "Sun's pretty," he said. 

"Every sunset I see still fills me with awe," she said a little wistfully, watching the horizon as the light dimmed slowly around them. 

Arthur watched her, his heart tightening at how idyllic the scene looked before him; a beautiful woman looking at the sunset in a boat on a lake seemed like such a romantic image. He wanted to sketch it as soon as he had some time with his journal, to memorialize this moment in pencil. 

"It's like I'm courtin' ya, with the way we look," he commented absently. 

"Wha-what?" she sputtered. 

"Uh, I mean, if someone were to see us from the shore, seein' us in a boat together with the sun settin'. That's all," he mumbled quickly. He glanced up at her from under the brim of his hat and their eyes met, spring leaves and clear skies. 

"O-oh, I suppose we do look like a pair," she said quietly, trying to keep her nerves intact. 

Arthur chuckled. "A lady with her homunculus."

Swatting at his arm, Eleanor gave him a sharp glare. "Now you stop that. I won't have you insulting my friend."

Arthur blinked. "Your friend?" 

She smiled brilliantly, making him feel warm as if the sun's rays had reached him straight in the heart. "Yes, my friend." Leaning in, she touched his knee. "Am I yours?" 

His heart stuttered at her words, and he quickly swallowed his first response with a more appropriate one. "Of course, Ella. We're friends."

She patted his knee and smiled again at him. He felt young again, his face warming, his hands a little sweaty as he felt himself smiling back at her like a fool, wishing for more than he deserved. 

***

They reached the shoreline, and as Arthur helped her out of the boat, he heard a rustling in the trees and a few crows took off, cawing loudly. Instinctively putting Eleanor behind him, he started to guide her to the other side of the path where there were boulders and more trees to use as cover. 

She followed him quietly, sensing his change, feeling the urgency in his movements as they almost made it to the forest.

"Hey there, mister." 

From behind a rock, two men appeared, guns in their hands. 

Arthur stood in front of Eleanor, slowly backing up towards the tree cover. "Hey now. Me and the lady were just passin' through."

“And you can keep on passin’ through. After you give us yer money.”

Eleanor quickly assessed the situation; the two men had their guns out, but pointed in the air, threatening, but not wanting to kill anyone just yet. She saw Arthur’s hand twitch slightly out of the corner of her eye, and slowly moved her hand towards her own volcanic pistol, just in case. 

A loud shot rang out, and the man who spoke first was clutching his hand, his gun dropping to the ground a few feet away. The other man quickly aimed at Arthur, who didn’t move. He couldn’t move, not with a lady behind him. Bracing himself, he prepared to take a hit.

Without thinking, Eleanor pulled Arthur backwards and to the side, swapping places with him as she whipped out her pistol with blazing speed and shot the other man’s gun out of his hand, just as he fired.

The bullet whizzed through the air, and as Arthur stumbled backwards, surprised by the strength of her, he watched as blood exploded from her left arm, where he had been standing moments before.

Without even wincing, Eleanor glared at the two men, both clutching their hands. “I suggest you leave. Now.”

Both men glared, but when Arthur pointed his gun at them as well, they both turned and fled, yelling obscenities as they ran.

Neither of them put their guns down until the would-be robbers were well out of sight. Together they let out a breath.

“You coulda been killed!” Arthur growled finally.

“So could you!” Eleanor shot back.

Arthur blinked, sighed, and shook his head. Then he went to his satchel, pulling out the whiskey bottle. “C’mon, let’s get yer arm tended to,” he said gently, the initial adrenaline surge leaving his body, leaving him a worried mess. Seeing the blood drip down her arm, he grimaced. “I didn’t want you to get hurt,” he said quietly, reaching out for her.

“I didn’t think,” she said, just as quietly. “I just acted. Because I wanted to protect you.”

He couldn’t respond, he only moved as he knew how, helping roll up her sleeve, pouring the whiskey to clean the wound. She flinched at the first contact of alcohol to her skin, but once the wound was clean, they discovered that the graze wasn’t as bad as it looked. Pulling a spare bandana out of his satchel, he wrapped up her arm, the act almost too intimate for Arthur as he avoided looking at her face until he had stepped back a respectable distance. 

“I, uh, thank you. Not sure if I’m worth the trouble, so don’t do that again,” he said. When he was met with silence, Arthur finally looked at her.

She was frowning at him. Stepping forward, she cupped his cheek. “You’re worth the trouble.”

“I-”

“Don’t argue with me on this point, I won’t budge.”

Arthur gaped like a fish for a second, seeing her glaring so cutely at him. Then he laughed, a true laugh from his heart, as he felt lighter and happier than he had in a long time.

***

They walked back to the nearby stable where they had left their horses, chatting amicably the whole way. He found that she had a wealth of knowledge about even the most mundane things, making the world a more fascinating place. When they had gotten their horses and walked them out of the building, Arthur realized that he wanted to go with her, wherever she went. Would he be welcomed? He didn’t want to burden her with his presence.

Her voice brought him out of his musings. "I will say, I've had a grand time with you, Arthur. I do hope we can go on another hunt together some day."

"That sounds mighty fine," he said, her smile infecting him as he couldn’t help but smile back at her. “You just let me know, and I’ll go with you.”

Eleanor surprised him by wrapping her arms around him for a hug, but this time he quickly hugged her back, reveling in the feel of her soft body in his arms as a protectiveness surged inside of him. He held her close and breathed in her scent, committing the aroma of wildflowers and vanilla to memory. Then he let her go reluctantly, his heart clawing for more of her touch.

“I’ll bring this back to you,” she said, patting the bandana around her arm.

“You keep it,” he said, trying not to let the feelings blossoming in his heart take over and make him say something foolish. “Just. Uh. Somethin’ to remember me by.” 

He wanted to kick himself for being a fool.

But Eleanor smiled warmly at him, just like the sun. If only he could memorize her smile forever. 

“Thank you, Arthur. I’ll remember you.” She mounted her horse. “I’ll send word soon!”

“Soon?”

“Yes! There’s always treasure to be found, after all,” she said cheekily. Waving goodbye, she galloped away as Arthur watched, letting that soft feeling wrap itself around him as he felt hope bloom in his heart. He was determined that next time they met, he would be the one to protect her smile. 

Her happiness was a treasure more valuable than gold.

**Author's Note:**

> This is a little outside of my usual stories, but I fell in love with darling Eleanor while I wrote this, and I hope you did too. @writingandsins, thank you so much for your contributions to the fandom!


End file.
